December 10, 2011

Tied Houses to Microbreweries

An Early Direct Marketing Method

A “tied house” was a type of saloon that originated in England, but gained infamy in pre-prohibition America. An institution that was believed to promote intemperance, tied houses were one of many factors leading to national prohibition in 1919. A number of former tied houses remain in Chicago, long after the practice has been made illegal. Most of the remaining buildings were tied to the Milwaukee-based Schlitz brewery. After viewing this post connect to another post about the early beer gardens of the neighborhood.

Ironically, the event which led to tied houses arising in Chicago came from an attempt at reforming liquor sales. In 1884, license fees to operate a saloon in the city were steeply raised in order to squeeze out lower class dives. Instead of going out of business, many saloon owners who could not afford the fee turned to breweries for financial assistance. The brewery would supply all the necessary accouterments to run a saloon. In exchange, the saloon keeper would be compelled to sell only that supporting brewery’s beer. This marketing strategy worked.

'Brewing companies soon realized that tied houses were a very profitable way to dump their product on the population. During the 1890’s, the number of saloons in Chicago increased dramatically. This led to increased competition and price wars among breweries. However, the cutthroat competition among the breweries had an adverse effect on its customers, and served to tarnish the respectability the industry had achieved during the 1870’s. To quote the Associated Beer Distributors of Illinois; “pressure was exerted on retailers to maximize sales without regard to the well-being of customers or the general public.”'

'The Schlitz brewing company of Milwaukee was the most prolific builder of tied houses in Chicago. These buildings were designed by the architectural firm of Frohmann & Jebsen, Schlitz tied houses are generally executed in a revival style such as Queen Anne or Baroque with varying levels of accuracy and detail. One common factor in most Schlitz tied houses are the distinctive globes encircled by a belt, as if Schlitz had a stranglehold on the world. Another common feature is the alternating red and cream face brick which can be found in different patterns.' - Forgotten Chicago

Located in a former Schlitz-owned pub, this Lake View bowling alley clings to a simpler time when a malfunctioning machine was never in danger of ruining a perfect game. Before the mechanical pinsetter was invented in the 1930's, alleys were staffed by teams of pin boys who manually reset pins and returned balls to players. Southport Lanes is one of the few places left that carries on this old-fashioned (and somewhat dangerous) tradition, employing a pair of individuals who work behind the scenes, dodging balls, picking up pins and keeping games running smoothly in return for rolled bills stuffed into a ball’s finger holes.'

Located at Belmont and Southport, Schubas looks like any other slightly upscale bar in Lakeview—except for the Schlitz logo on the building. Considered one of the best small rooms in Chicago, Schubas has been a destination for rising artists as they tried to grasp something magical, something inexpressible to connect with their fans. Since opening in 1989, Schubas has hosted more than its fair share of future stars—The National, Janelle Monáe, and My Morning Jacket, to name a few of the venue’s Hall of Famers.' Read more ....

In the years 1975 to 1988 the occupants was a tavern named Gasper's. The owner of Gasper's told the Reader in 1988, "It's a rough business," he says. "The
hours are real weird. People come by and say, 'Dean, you got it made.' But
you're here at noon replacing a sink or fishing a Kotex out of the lady's-room
john, or mopping up vomit off the floor, and you stay up till all hours. I
never had stitches in my life until I worked in this business. A guy busted one
of our picture windows on me, another guy pulled a gun on me--it turned out to
be a toy, but still". Read more with this link.

The Micro-Breweries of 2016This a lengthy list of breweries located throughout the Chicagoland area. The short list below are micro-breweries that have an address that was once located in the former township/city of Lake View.

Narrative & Navigation

This has been a passion of mine for several years. This passion began with a simple inquiry of an ornate gate that surrounds a parking lot on my street. This singular inquiry lead me to learn everything I could online about the history of my neighborhood - Lake View, one of the 77 neighborhoods within the City of Chicago. Consider this topical blog as an online library of information for educators like myself who intend to teach others about this historical & robust corner of Chicago. I hope you enjoy the read and add any type of comments at the end of each post. I have a Facebook presence called 'LakeView Historical'.